Scientists expect one billion people to have their genomes sequenced by 2025. Yet cultural psychologist Steven J. Heine argues that, in trying to know who we are and where we come from, we’re likely to completely misinterpret what’s “in our DNA.” Heine’s fresh, surprising conclusions about the promise, and limits, of genetic engineering and DNA testing upend conventional thinking and reveal a simple, profound truth: your genes create life—but they do not control it.

Steven J. Heine is Distinguished University Scholar and Professor of Social and Cultural Psychology at the University of British Columbia and author of Cultural Psychology, the top-selling textbook in the field. He lives in Vancouver, Canada.